How to Fake It in America

Historian Amanda Foreman on great pretenders, from George Washington's ghostwriter to Marilyn Monroe's real voice.

By

Amanda Foreman

Dec. 13, 2013 7:51 p.m. ET

The philosopher Gilbert Ryle coined the term "ghost in the machine" to make fun of Descartes' influential idea that the human mind ("the ghost") is utterly separate from the body. But it was the English rock band The Police who popularized the expression, making it the title of their classic 1981 album. Today "ghost in the machine" shows up everywhere. It has become a metaphor for the assorted forms of fakery that are constantly revealed in the mashup of modern culture.